Thailand Snakes FAQ

byVern

Snake FAQ – Everything you need to know about Snakes in Thailand – and more.

Thailand has a large number of species of snakes – over 200 species of which more than 60 are venomous (have venom dangerous to humans). I noticed that many people are afraid to hike in Thailand because of their fear of snakes. I wrote this Thailand Snake FAQ to help dispel any rumors and clarify what exactly are the dangers you might encounter here on vacation or for a long-term stay.

Here are some quick snake facts. Any snake experts out there can question these facts and I’ll change the wording if necessary. I’m NOT a herpetologist, so please, if you are and can back up your facts – feel free to straighten me out anywhere here on this section of Thailand Snakes.

Thailand snakes are NOT interested in coming after you. You are not a target when you’re retreating. Only two of the snakes – the Burmese and Reticulated Pythons get large enough to eat you or your children. Recently I saw a Thailand python eat an adult goat (a kid) but, there hasn’t been a child eaten for as far as I can remember.

Thailand snakes don’t chase you. Thailand cobras – the king cobras can ‘chase’ you in short spurts – but, it’s only while they are defending themselves and are actively striking that they move forward toward you at all. The copperheaded racers (rat snake) and king cobras tend to move toward you as they strike. Sometimes Kings give a little follow up strike too. One of these nailed a wildlife presenter with National Geographic while in India.

You are NOT likely to see a venomous or non-venomous snake in Thailand during your vacation. Most visitors do not. I don’t have figures but, I’d guess less than 1% see any snake at all – including in the Thailand snake shows.

Snakes are active during the day and night. I’ve seen Golden Tree snakes, Monocled Cobras, King Cobras, Vipers, Copperheaded Racers, and all kinds of snakes during the daytime. Supposedly more snakes are active at night. Snakes are more active during April, May, June in Thailand and also during and after rain.

More snakes are active at sea-level than in the higher elevations, but snakes can regularly be found on mountains.

Well, I’ll define ‘most dangerous’ as the one that most often bites humans and that most often kills humans in Thailand – the Malayan Pit Viper. A brown, thick as a shovel handle, snake that is a meter or less long. They have diamond patterns on their backs and a very triangle shaped head. The other biter in Thailand is the “Russell’s Viper” which kills more people across the globe than any other. The reason is that these snakes are usually well hidden and someone steps too close and they strike quickly and have a deep bite. The King Cobras can kill elephants because the volume of their venom transfer is very large. The Kraits, Sea Snakes, and Monocled Cobras all have more potent venom per milliliter than the King Cobra.

Are venomous snakes usually a certain color?

No. Cobras are black, grey, brown, yellow, or white. Malaysian Kraits are black/white striped or black/yellow striped. Some venomous snakes have red heads or necks. Many venomous tree vipers are green. Some have a rainbow coloring.Â Some have beautiful patterns like Russell’s Viper or the Malayan Pit Viper. If you can’t identify the snake absolutely without a doubt – consider it venomous and deadly.

Do all venomous (poisonous) snakes warn you before they strike?

No. King Cobras, and Monocled Cobras may hiss weakly or strongly, but not all the time. Same with the Chain Viper (Russell’s Viper). Many venomous snakes do not hiss or give any warning before striking.

Where am I most likely to encounter a snake in Thailand?

Anywhere you are. That’s the short answer. My friend in Surat Thani had cobras coming into his kitchen regularly. A girl in Bangkok wrote me to show me photos of a large golden tree snake on the balcony of her apartment building. A foreigner on Ko Samui has a part-time business catching snakes for locals and tourists that find them. I’ve seen snakes in pools of water, ponds, on the highway, under trash cans, on mountains, under a big leaf, in my backyard, and on a branch above my head. There is no place in Thailand that doesn’t have snakes. They inhabit all areas of Thailand – and there are many in Bangkok due to the abundance of food – rats and frogs primarily.

What should I do if bitten by a snake in Thailand and I don’t know what kind of snake bit me?

1. Try to remember what the snake looked like so you can choose it from a group of photos at the hospital – assuming they have photos. You may need to draw it – and/or describe it in words. Think about: Length, Thickness, color, pattern, shape of it’s head. Was it triangular? Triangular heads – when viewed from above can signify a venomous snake. Think also about where the snake was when it bit you – in a tree? On the path? In grass? In the water?

2. Sucking out the poison is not recommended because you are introducing bacteria laden saliva into the wound – maybe initiating infection on top of the poisoning. Usually only very minute amounts of poison can be removed by sucking on the wound – and the rubber suction cups you’d find in a snake-bite kit are worthless – they don’t provide enough suction to help much at all. Personally, if it was me and I could reach the area – and especially if I could see poison around the wound? I’d try to suck it out without saliva getting inside.

2. Apply an even pressure compress directly over the wound to slow the spread of the poison. No tourniquets. You should be able to put a finger under the wrapped pad without too much effort.

Hospitals stock Antivenom (or antivenin or antivenene) for the most common snake bites. The biggest issue – is usually snake identification, each species of snake requires a specific antivenom to treat the snake-bite victim.

Where can I see photos of poisonous snakes in Thailand that I need to be extra cautious of?

Recently I created a site dedicated to showing photos of the snakes of Thailand at Thailand Snakes (.com). I’m adding photos all the time, if you are bitten have a look there and see if you can find which one bit you – if you have time. First move should be to the hospital’s intensive care section.

Don’t miss – THAILAND SNAKES (.com) – my other site dedicated to showing people the venomous and non-venomous snakes of Thailand.

Where can I see videos of Thailand snakes?

I’ve taken a number of videos of snakes I’ve found in Thailand – click one of the links below to see the videos:

I hope this Thailand snake FAQ helped answer any questions you had about snakes in Thailand. Feel free to send questions to me or take photos of snakes in your yard or house that you’d like for me to identify and send to: info@ThailandSnakes.com.

Don’t miss – THAILAND SNAKES (.com) – my other site dedicated to showing people the venomous and non-venomous snakes of Thailand.